Residents of the Nashville area have good reasons to worry about what their neighbors are doing with their properties. In some cases, a neighboring property could be downright dangerous. Take, for example, someone who builds an unfenced swimming pool or who is allowing drug transactions at their home.
Homeowners who allow dangerous conditions put their neighbors in a state of heightened vigilance and may cause actual injuries or damage. More often, though, a neighbor’s decision not to maintain their home, build something unsightly or take other thoughtless actions will hurt a homeowner’s land value.
After all, location is key in Middle Tennessee’s residential real estate market. If even one house in a neighborhood makes the neighborhood less appealing, buyers could look elsewhere.
A concerned homeowner may have a number of options for neighborhood control
Owners who are concerned about the thoughtless actions of their neighbors may have legal options available to them.
For one, especially if they are part of a planned community, an owner may be able to look to the community’s restrictive covenants. To review, a restrictive covenant puts conditions on what a person living in a neighborhood may or may not do on their land.
Other options may include checking over the local zoning laws and other land use regulations. However, the enforcements of these rules is usually the responsibility of the government. There may even be certain so-called common law legal actions, such as a nuisance case.
In most states, including Tennessee, landowners may not use their land in such a way so as to interfere with their neighbors’ ability to enjoy their land. Whether a nuisance action is available in a particular case will depend on the circumstance. The bottom line is that homeowners have every right to be concerned if their neighbors’ actions are lowering the equity in their property through their actions. They may have legal remedies available to them.
